REFIT: Resituating Europe's first towns: A case study in enhancing knowledge transfer and developing sustainable management of cultural landscapes

Understanding and integrating stakeholders as active creators and beneficiaries of cultural landscapes is an essential but under-developed element of archaeological heritage research. Through research focusing on some of the most significant monuments in European history (Late Iron Age oppida: c.200BC-AD60), this project will focus on understanding and engaging under-represented users (SMEs/wildlife organisations/farmers) unaware of the value of this pan-European phenomenon. Despite their significance as Europe's first urbanism, oppida are poorly recognised and underdeveloped as foci for cultural and economic sustainability. By maximising the impact of existing expertise on managing oppida in Europe through trans-national cooperation, this project will fore-front non-academic stakeholders (wildlife organisations; farmers; SMEs; National Parks), to develop better sustainable ways of exploring and exploiting this resource. It aims to examine current perceptions and engagement with these monuments & contrasting management/engagement strategies across Europe. Utilizing identified best-practice from different countries it will then implement novel engagement strategies (Digital open-access field guides; SME participatory events; open workshops) at European case studies in France, Spain and the UK. The aim is to develop high-quality transferable tools for engagement which can be transferred to other sites across the continent. This project directly fits the Heritage Plus aims and topics in addressing how we develop sustainable strategies for managing cultural heritage and examine the ways in which we can use that heritage. It does so by focusing on examining the perceptions and needs of all stakeholders (e.g. Ecologists; Wildlife managers; Businesses) and integrating them directly in to research activities. This project will use trans-national expertise to develop a set of strategies which can act as exemplars in how to revitalise the role in society of under-recognised elements of Europe's heritage.

RQ3. Engagement and Impact: Objective 5. Critically assess and define the differences in/efficacy of existing engagement strategies in France, UK and Spain to identify best practice. Objective 6.Develop and test efficacy of new engagement strategies through participatory research engagement.

Part C - Potential Impact C1 Relevance to the Call for Proposals including fit to the aims and topics of HERITAGE PLUS Sustainability: This project directly addresses the call for sustainable strategies for managing cultural heritage and the use of this heritage. It does so by focusing on the need to marry the requirements of sustainable landscapes whilst protecting heritage and disseminating research knowledge. Rarely have projects researched how non-heritage stakeholders perceive and interact, not just with understanding heritage, but the modes and methods of sustainable protection. By working on core European heritage assets, forging links with key non-heritage stakeholders, the project develops strategies and mechanism which will be sustained in the long-term. Addressing societal challenges: The project directly address the aim of meeting social challenges by developing methodologies to integrate frequently neglected stakeholders (rural SMEs, ecologists, NGOs) in the presentation and management of cultural landscapes. The projects methodologies will enhance benefits to these stakeholders addressing issues of rural economic decline and lack of constructive dialogues between cultural landscape stakeholders. Though engaging all groups (and the wider public) in presenting cultural landscapes as cultural ecosystems, this aims to enable the sustainability of these landscapes, ecologically, culturally AND economically. Narrowing the gap. Directly integrating NGOs and SMEs within the project as Associated Partners and as Advisory board members, reflects the call to narrow the gap between heritage research (in this case archaeological) and the values/interests of other stakeholders, to solve the problems faced in managing, protecting and engaging people with cultural heritage.
Interdisciplinary and collaborative: the project fits the aim to maximise the value of research by integrating organisations outside the academic community, including SMEs (e.g. County Landowners and Businesses Association), voluntary groups/Charites (Wildlife Trusts) and ecology focused bodies (e.g. National Parks) as Associate Partners and Advisory board members. Interactions and partnerships: through workshops & engagement events, a prime focus of this project is engaging and communicating between cultural heritage researchers and a variety of user groups and stakeholders. New and exciting knowledge exchange opportunities: Participatory workshop and engagement events targeted at SME and stakeholders will develop strategies to exchange knowledge between heritage managers, business and core stakeholders (such as wildlife) groups. Innovative tools such as digital field guides that integrate other value information (wildlife, ecology, farming strategies) represent opportunities for local business to explore ways of situating the identity of their products and services as part of cultural ecosystems, in a novel and transferable way.